Reagan defends arms sales to Iran, Nov. 13, 1986

Seated before a TV camera in the Oval Office, President Ronald Reagan on this day in 1986 sought to explain — and, in part, defend — the secret sale of arms to Iran despite a U.S. arms embargo.

White House officials hoped the arms transfers, routed through Israel, would help secure the release of seven U.S. hostages being held in Lebanon. They also used the proceeds of the sale to funnel weapons to Nicaraguan insurgents, known as the Contras, whom Reagan supported — despite a congressional ban on such transfers.

Story Continued Below

In an address to the nation 10 days after the arms-for-hostages deal was revealed in a Lebanese magazine, the president falsely said there was no arms-for-hostages bargain with the Iranians. As he put it:

“My purpose was … to send a signal that the United States was prepared to replace the animosity between [the U.S. and Iran] with a new relationship. … At the same time, we undertook this initiative, we made clear that Iran must oppose all forms of international terrorism as a condition of progress in our relationship. The most significant step which Iran could take, we indicated, would be to use its influence in Lebanon to secure the release of all hostages held there.”

By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time.

In defending his actions, Reagan explained that “during the course of our secret discussions, I authorized the transfer of small amounts of defensive weapons and spare parts for defensive systems to Iran. My purpose was to convince Tehran that our negotiators were acting with my authority, to send a signal that the United States was prepared to replace the animosity between us with a new relationship. These modest deliveries, taken together, could easily fit into a single cargo plane. They could not, taken together, affect the outcome of the six-year war between Iran and Iraq nor could they affect in any way the military balance between the two countries. Those with whom we were in contact took considerable risks and needed a signal of our serious intent if they were to carry on and broaden the dialog.”

Later that month, the Iran-Contra scandal metastasized when Lt. Col. Oliver North, a senior aide on the National Security Council, illegally destroyed or hid key documents that revealed what had transpired. At his 1989 trial, North testified that he had witnessed his boss, Vice Adm. John Poindexter, Reagan’s national security adviser, shred the sole signed copy of a presidential covert-action finding that authorized the CIA to initiate Hawk missile shipments to Iran.

On Nov. 25, Reagan fired North. On the same day, Poindexter resigned.

In a subsequent nationally televised address on March 4, 1987, Reagan took responsibility for any actions of which he was unaware, admitting that “what began as a strategic opening to Iran deteriorated, in its implementation, into trading arms for hostages.”

SOURCE: “VEIL: THE SECRET WARS OF THE CIA 1981-1987,” BY BOB WOODWARD (1987)